In Canada we are getting ready for something that hasn’t happened for 36 years – the Men’s National Soccer Team is going to the World Cup. What happened? John Herdman is what happened. If you don’t know about John Herdman take some time to listen to or watch his talks. John is a self proclaimed “Hobbit from New Zealand”.

John Herdman was actually born in England, loved soccer (football) and made his way to New Zealand. In 2011, John made his way to Canada to take over leadership of the Womens National Team. Coming off their worst international performance ever, John quickly led the Womens Team to a gold medal finish at the 2011 Pan American Games in Mexico followed by bronze medals at both the 2012 and 2016 Olympic Games.

In January 2018, John inherited the Canadian Mens National Team ranked 94th in the world. Where are they today, currently ranked 33rd and on their way to the World Cup.

How does John do this? John finds the North Star for the team and individuals on the team. This becomes the external motivation for the team and players – unanimous focus on a common goal. While John provides external motivation, he also puts the team together with individuals that are internally motivated and will “Live Above the Line” and provide 80% + every single day. 100% is not possible, but 80% is the minimuim requirement (at approximately 13:45 of the clip below). Living below 80% is mediocrity and if you live below that line, you don’t represent Canada because you don’t deserve it.

Now in your personal or professional life, are you passionate about what you do and are you intrinsically motivated to Live Above The Line?